


At the Beginning

by cassidyrosececilia



Category: Anastasia - Flaherty/Ahrens/McNally
Genre: 1920s, F/M, Fluff, NYC
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-06
Updated: 2018-12-06
Packaged: 2019-09-12 23:34:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16881387
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cassidyrosececilia/pseuds/cassidyrosececilia
Summary: Just a lil story about Anya and Dmitry moving to NYC! We'll see how this goes.





	At the Beginning

When Anya and Dmitry could finally make out the city’s outline in the distance from the ship’s deck, they weren’t quite sure what to expect. From Paris the pair had traveled to London, and in London, they counted their pennies and saved to get on a ship to the United States of America-- to New York City. They'd heard much about New York City. The land of opportunity and the American dream, the land of culture, of music, of parties, of wealth. Where a man could really buckle down and _make_ something of himself. The couple knew that these rumors, passed from mouth to mouth in Paris and London, might be entirely false. The city in the distance could be a nightmare disguised as a miracle. But the pair held steadfast to the dream of making something of themselves-- of becoming.

Anya, dressed once again in her pauper’s clothes, clung to the arm of the stoic man beside her. The five-day-long trip, spent mostly crammed below deck in their quarters that were hardly big enough to fit their bed, had taken a lot out of the two. In fact, it had taken everything out of Anya not to rip her boyfriend to shreds on most of the past five nights. Now that the end of the trip was near, though, Anya was increasingly grateful for the young man at her side. She’d not have wanted anyone but her strong-armed Dima to hold her when the nightmares inevitably struck, for it was always the gentle heaving of his chest and steady beat of his heart that lulled her back to sleep.

Anya’s mind couldn’t help but flit back to one particularly horrid night, after a dream so vivid and real that the feeling it produced stuck in her chest for days. In the dream, she was back in Yekaterinburg with her family. The all-too-familiar cold cellar floor sent a chill up her spine, and she felt her arms once again wrapped around her father’s strong frame. For a moment, she felt almost safe—until the soldiers appeared, their guns aimed straight to her chest. Her vision went dark, but she could still hear the piercing screams and sobs of her family. All she could think to do was scream, and that’s how she woke up: screaming. Before she knew it, Dmitry was by her side, his arms ready to hold her, his hands ready to dry her tears. And for this, she was thankful—she’d spent so long without anyone to lull her to sleep on sleepless nights.   

She snuck a peek up at the handsome young man beside her. He gazed out into the distance, his dark hair messy and deep brown eyes searching the horizon. Anya was taken aback by the distinctly displeased look on his face.

“Dmitry,” she began, reaching her hand up to brush some hair out of his face, “what’s wrong? You look upset.” Dmitry caught her eyes briefly, before leaning down and pressing his lips to her forehead.

“It’s nothing, Anya…nothing important, anyway. It’s just that, well, I’m a little bit nervous. Aren’t you?” His eyes darted down to meet hers again, this time scanning for any hint of confirmation in his fears. “I mean, Petersburg wasn’t anything special, or even anything good, by anyone’s account. But at least I knew what to expect there. I knew everything there was to know about it like the back of my hand. This city on the horizon, it’s foreign. It’s new. And that makes me a little nervous.”

Anya nodded her head. “It makes me nervous, too,” she admitted. “I’m a little less nervous when I think about how far we’ve come, though. We’re approaching America. New York City is on the horizon—who would have thought?” She beamed lovingly up at her beau. “Dima, we have the chance to make a life for ourselves. We have the chance to start a family of our own—to start anew. Doesn’t that excite you?”

Dmitry couldn’t help but smile back. “Of course it does, my love. It’s just butterflies, that’s all.”

Anya grabbed Dmitry’s hand and pulled him closer. “Butterflies or no butterflies, we’re here! We’ve made it!” She stood on her tiptoes and pulled Dmitry in close for a kiss. “And I wouldn’t have wanted to make this journey with anyone other than you.” Anya wrapped her arms around her boyfriend, and laid her head on his chest.

And so the pair stood, lips pursed and hearts determined, as the steamboat chugged steadily towards their new future.


End file.
